FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Sacred Heart University softball team opened its Northeast Conference (NEC) series against Central Connecticut State with two dramatic wins at Pioneer Park on Tuesday afternoon. The Pioneers allowed one hit in game one in a 3-0 victory before taking the nightcap 3-2 in 10 innings. 

With two league wins today, the Pioneers are on the cusp of clinching an NEC Championship berth with a 14-6 league record. SHU is second in the conference standings with four games left, needing one victory to clinch its first playoff appearance since 2021. 

Team Records:
Sacred Heart (23-24,14-6 NEC)
CCSU (23-14, 10-10 NEC)  

Game 1: SHU 3, CCSU 0
Pitchers:
Sam Kowalski (SHU) – (W, 7.0 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 7 strikeouts, 13-10 record)
Kaylee Whittaker (CCSU) – (L, 6.0 innings pitched, 3 earned runs, 4 strikeouts, 11-7 record)

Top Performers:
Carly Koltko (SHU) – 2-3, 2 RBIs, 1 double
Kiley Gurysh (SHU) – 1-1, 1 run

Of Note:
The Pioneers took the lead in game one in the bottom of the second, tallying three hits and a walk in the frame. With the bases loaded and two outs, Jenna Mowad worked a walk to earn an RBI and put SHU up 1-0. 

Sacred Heart added to its lead in the bottom of the fifth. The Pios strung together two straight singles and a double to plate two, building a 3-0 lead. Carly Koltko hit the double to increase her team lead in RBIs to 27. 

The story of game one was pitching dominance from Sam Kowalski. The sophomore did not allow a hit until the top of the seventh, striking out seven batters in her fourth complete-game shutout of the season. 

Game 2: SHU 3, CCSU 2 (10 inn.)
Pitchers:
Emily Heath (SHU) – (W, 10.0 innings pitched, 2 earned runs, 6 strikeouts, 10-10 record)
Liz Hamilton (CCSU) – (L, 9.2 innings pitched, 0 earned runs, 6 strikeouts, 9-4 record)

Top Performers:
Kiley Gurysh (SHU) – 2-4, 1 double
Charlene Davis (SHU) – 1-1, 2 RBIs, 1 double

Of Note:
The nightcap this afternoon featured another pitchers' duel, with the game going to extra innings scoreless. 

The first runs of the contest came from the Blue Devils, who took a 2-0 lead in the top of the eighth. 

With the game on the line, the Pioneers were down to their final out in the bottom of the eight. With two on and two out, Kiley Gurysh smacked a double over the left fielder's head to plate Savannah Moore and Cayla Nista. Gurysh's RBIs are her first this season. 

After a scoreless ninth inning, the Pioneers had another chance to win in the bottom of the 10th. With a runner on second because of the tiebreaker rule, Charlene Davis sac bunted her teammate over to third. In the next at-bat, Nicole Henke fired a flyout to left, allowing Kaelyn Freed to tag up and score from third to end the game. 

In the circle, Emily Heath moved to 10-10 on the season by throwing all 10.0 innings of game two. The sophomore struck out six in the nightcap. 

Up Next:
SHU wraps up the series against CCSU tomorrow at 2 p.m. at Pioneer Park.